Homegrown Music Festival @ Main Street Garden Park, Dallas, TX

In its fifth year, Homegrown Fest continues to grow and continues to bring great Texas artists to the Main Street Garden Park in downtown Dallas. The perfect space to host a music festival with a great plot of grass, big enough to have two modestly-sized stages but small enough to feel intimate and not overwhelming or impersonal. Having a large pool of Texas-based artists to choose from, the booking for Homegrown has been stellar, bringing a plethora of diverse talent from around the state. Only a couple of bands have made it to the Homegrown stage more than once, leaving plenty of room to showcase new bands each year. Under the warm Texas sun, this year's installment was a great time for the music lovers of North Texas.

I had planned to cover the entire festival but I had to work a short afternoon shift for work. Fortunately, I had Antonio go shoot the early lineup before I showed up for the Baptist Generals. Unlike JMBLYA the week before, the crowd was more spread out and less problematic, which was a welcome sight. The family-friendly atmosphere worked well for artists like Seryn, Son of Stan, and Sarah Jaffe, attracting large audiences to the Shiner Stage. Trail of Dead also brought a large backing but their audience was a bit less diverse and a bit more chaotic. But all fans united as the Toadies took the Shiner Stage to perform their album, Rubberneck. In its 20th anniversary, the classic Toadies' tracks have held up well, creating mass singalongs and memories of days past. I haven't seen the Toadies since 1998, so it was a welcome performance. A great performance, at that. Photos of the festival are below:

Calhoun